Annemaree Lloyd – professor in Library and Information Science

From Australia to Sweden – when Annemaree Lloyd was made an offer to good to resist she packed her bags and moved to Borås. Now she is a new professor in Library and Information Science at the Swedish School of Library and Information Science.

Tell us about briefly about your research? –I am a social science researcher with an interest in socio-cultural and practice theoretical perspectives; in landscape and visual methodology; and in qualitative techniques. Areas of research interest are information literacies and contemporary information practices in formal and informal learning connected to workplaces, community settings and in higher education. My current research program focuses on the intersection between information, learning, and the performance of practice. I am also interested in the connection between literacies of information, social inclusion, and collaborative learning.

– In the workplace sector, my research explores the information experience involved in learning work practices and performance of practice. Current interests include an exploration of the transition from education to work and the nature of information work. In the health information field, I am engaged in interdisciplinary research that explores nurses’ workplace learning. Her research interests extend to smart working practices in digital environments and how collaborative workplace practices are changing\being redefined when workers are no longer physically collocated.

– In the community sector, I am currently completing research refugee youth and refugee groups. This research focuses on the intersection between learning, information literacies, information practices and social inclusion in everyday spaces. Of particular interest is how newcomer groups learn about their new resettlement landscapes, and the role information literacies and information practices play in supporting informal learning.

– In the health sector, I am have been working on projects that focus on health literacy, in relation to the information practices of people with chronic illness. I am also concluding a project on refugee health literacy practices.

– I hope to be able to extend and apply my research to Swedish contexts.

Why the University of Borås? – The Swedish School of Library and Information Science is an important school in the field of library and information science worldwide and is held in very high regard. The offer to come and work with academics who are considered top ranking scholars in the field and who are doing innovative and cutting edge research in this field was too good to resist.

How long will you be here? – It is my intention to build a strong research program, so I hope to be here for a long time!

What is the biggest culture clash between Australia and Sweden? – Sweden and Australia are very similar and share many of the same values about fairness, equity, importance of family etc.The big difference is Lines – in Sweden (and I am generalising) everyone one lines up in an orderly fashion, they take a ticket and take their turn ...this is not always the case in Australia!